A Hangman's Noose
by TenkuuBatsu
Summary: "Did you know? A hangman's noose has thirteen turns." Sasuke didn't believe in coincidences. But the latter seem to find him in the most painfully imagined way, in the form of one blond hair, blue-eyed kid. AU, Pre-slash. Oneshot.


**A Hangman's Noose**

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.

* * *

Beep.

Darkness. All that he could see in front of himself was never-ending darkness.

Beep.

There were murmurings around him. The distant voices were soft, but the words still rang clear.

Beep.

Dead. They were all dead. He was the only one left. Things should never have ended up this way. He should have landed with the same fate as well.

Beep.

Something wet trickled down his cheek, but he couldn't move his hand to wipe it away. They were tears, he realized. Was he crying? Crying for his family?

Beep.

No, he amended. He was crying for himself. Because he had no one left.

It was pathetic.

But the tears wouldn't stop flowing.

* * *

"Hey. Why are you crying?"

Sasuke looked up. There was someone in front of him. But he couldn't see the person clearly. There was just too much light.

"Am I dead?" He asked softly, voice cracking from the lack of usage.

"Of course not, silly! I'm talking to you, aren't I?"

His eyes adjusted themselves, and he could roughly make out the form of the person now. It was a kid roughly his age. It was still too blinding to see everything clearly though.

"You might not be real." Sasuke pointed out. Then he paused, and looked down once more, huddling himself tighter. "Not like it makes a difference otherwise."

"Why not?" The voice asked. "I finally found someone to play with. You… You'll be my friend right?"

Irritating. Sasuke glared at the other through his bangs. All he wanted was some time alone. And the other party didn't look like he was planning to give him any.

"I don't need… friends." Sasuke said dully. "I don't need… anyone close to me. They'll all end up like- end up dead. Now go away."

The other cocked his head, as though he didn't understand a word Sasuke was saying. "Everyone will die eventually. There's nothing to be sad about."

Sasuke gaped in shock at the sheer bluntness of the other's statement. His surprise was quick to boil into anger. "What do you know?" He seethed. "He killed them all. My brother- he killed- murdered- everyone else but me. Don't talk like you know everything about me!"

Sasuke paused in his rant, as his ears picked up a strange sound. There was an odd gurgling sound coming from the companion in his head. Sasuke belatedly realized that the other was laughing at him. Somehow, he felt too swollen and tired to walk over and give the guy a punch.

"For starters, at least I know that you're one interesting person to talk to."

Sasuke disagreed, but he stayed silent. He conversation ability had been completely washed out for the entire day talking to this person. Instead, he settled for glaring,

"Your brother- he left you alive, didn't he?" The voice was arrogant, as though he had managed to find something Sasuke couldn't see. "That must mean that you're someone special to him."

"He said that I wasn't worth killing." Sasuke intoned dully.

"And you believe him?" The other shot back. "Seriously, you should check these sort of things out for yourself." His voice softened slightly as he walked closer to scrutinize Sasuke better. Hey… you're still alive. That heart of yours… it's still beating. So… stop hiding yourself anymore."

"I couldn't do anything!" Sasuke burst out in anger. Hot tears started flowing out from his eyes once more. "He's right- I'm useless. I have nothing. No one would listen-"

"I did!" The other interrupted loudly. "I listened. You have me. Even the entire world is against you, I'll always be there for you. It's not like I have anything to lose."

"But you're not real." Sasuke pointed out morosely.

"No I am!" The other cried out indigently. He stuck out his hand. "I'm Uzumaki Naruto! What's your name?"

Sun kissed skin. Bright yellow hair. And a pair of azure blue eyes which Sasuke just can't take his eyes off.

He reached out to take the proffered hand, but to his surprise, his hand slid through as though the other was made out of smoke and air. "…Sasuke! I'm Uchiha Sasuke." Sasuke managed to gasp out, eyes widening in horror as his only companion was disappearing in front of his very own eyes.

His world went white the moment those words left his lips. The last image imprinted in his head was the stranger's dazzling grin.

* * *

"…Lost consciousness….weeks ago…"

"…Killed everyone…. Only one survivor… Funeral…"

"… Crippled… can never…. Again…. Still a kid… Barely ….teen."

The world around him shifted from stark black to pure white in second. In a split second, Sasuke wondered if that Naruto guy had lied to him and he was now in the afterlife. Because if that was true, Sasuke would make sure that there was hell to pay…

He didn't have time to think otherwise. His vision was blurred and each breath he took was painful. Gasping, he tried to move from his spot, but his legs wouldn't respond to his commands.

"Re…la…Calm….own!… Medics… to… help..."

Wincing, Sasuke forced himself to take slow, heavy breaths. His vision cleared somewhat, and he could roughly tell that there were several people working on the machines connected to him at his bedside. Tilting his head slightly, a familiar visage caught his eye.

"Ka-" He couldn't get any further than that, has he broke down into a fit of dry violent coughs. Someone pushed a glass of water into his hands, which he gulped down thankfully.

"Sasuke… " Hatake Kakashi, his tutor and family friend approached his bedside. "… Thank goodness. You've awake."

"How… long…?" Sasuke gasped out shakily. His throat was dry, and the water wasn't enough to soothe it. Thankfully, Kakashi seemed to get a grasp of what he was trying to say.

"You were out for almost two weeks. I'm sorry… the…funeral took place without you." Kakashi moved closer, head bowed down in guilt.

"E-Even…him?" Sasuke cringed at the sudden spike of pain down his throat. Since when did speaking become such a torture?

"Aaa. Even Itachi." Kakashi replied softly. " He… I didn't burry him with your parents, if this makes you feel better. Sasuke... I'm sorry. If only… if only I had been there faster…"

Sasuke shook his head to signal that he was fine. He pushed himself up, wanting to stand up and reach out to comfort the older man, but paused halfway in his tracks. Eyes widening in horror, he ripped off the sterilized white sheets that were covering him.

"Kakashi… my…" Sasuke said weakly.

"Ah. I'm sorry, Sasuke…" Kakashi said, enveloping the young boy in a hug, "The damage was too huge… the doctors said that- the doctors couldn't save it."

Sasuke was too numb in shock to even shed a single tear, as Kakashi murmured apology after apology into his ear.

Not having a house to return home to was not enough. Itachi had even robbed him of his ability to walk again.

He really had nothing left.

His existence was meaningless.

* * *

"Moping about like a big crybaby again?"

Sasuke glared at the blue eyes which started back fearlessly into his own onyx pair. "You again."

His statement went ignored.

"Hey hey, have you seen the ocean before?"

The sudden change of topics in the questions caught Sasuke of guard. "I did… once. With my br- with my family." Sasuke replied warily, eyeing the other with a distrustful glaze. "Why?"

"Hm? No reason in particular." Naruto leaned backwards casually, closing his eyes with a lazy, contented smile on his face. "It's just… I thought it would be nice to see the ocean just once before I move on."

Sasuke glanced quizzically at the other. "What are you talking about? Dobe, you're just a figment of my imagination."

"Sasuke!" Naruto bolted upright, indignant. "When will you realize that I'm just as real as you are!"

"Maybe when you stop appearing in my dreams and preaching nonsense to my head." Sasuke shot back cruelly.

"I'm not talking crap! You just refuse to face reality!"

"Naruto… do you believe that thirteen is an unlucky number?" Sasuke wondered out loud.

"Huh?" Now it was Naruto's turn to be thrown off by the sudden change of topics once again.

"Did you know? A hangman's noose has thirteen turns." Sasuke said softly, fingering the raw red marks on his throat, as though a red serpent has coiled itself tightly around it. "He strangled my parents with it… and then moved on to me… but he stopped halfway to hang himself up instead."

Seeing as Naruto was keeping quiet, Sasuke continued mirthlessly, an empty smile on his face. "My family believes that each son will have to endure a calamity once they reach thirteen years of age. I… I don't think I'll be able to live through mine."

"I won't allow that!"

Sasuke turned to quirk an amused eyebrow at the heated child beside him. "Won't allow?" he quibbled.

Naruto nodded his head furiously. "You're my friend so… I won't allow any of my friends to die before me! Sasuke, you're gonna grow up and own a rich car, with a big house, and I can imagine you smirking with that snobbish looking face saying 'Hey, look at me now, Naruto, toldja I could totally break that asshole-'" he broke of as a bout of rusty sounding noises could be heard.

The Uchiha was chuckling in mirth, his laughter quiet but contagious nonetheless. Naruto was quick to join in with him.

"And you'll be right beside me to tell me how much of a fool I am to follow all your silly little preaches about not giving up in life, right?" Sasuke smirked.

It was quick, but Sasuke caught the brief hesitation in the other's eyes. "Aaa. I'll be watching you even until then, Sasuke." Naruto smiled widely, eyes crinkling up at the corners. "It's a promise, and I don't go back on my promises."

He broke into a mischievous grin then. "Besides, I'm turning thirteen soon! I'll turn it into your lucky number, Sasuke!"

"I'll hold you on to that." Sasuke said seriously.

Because with the blonde haired idiot by his side, Sasuke knew that he could make the other's dreams into a reality.

* * *

"Looking good, Sasuke."

Sasuke looked up from his physiotherapy exercises, and acknowledged his tutor's praise with a grudging tilt of his head.

"Still, it makes me wonder where you got all the sudden determination to get straight back into the playing field, considering that you were just a moping mess two days ago when you just woke up." Kakashi mused.

"I'm not weak."

Kakashi blinked. "I know. I didn't said you were."

"I'm going to prove that to Itachi." Sasuke said softly, as much as his raw throat would allow him to. "I'll bring the Uchiha into greater power than what it currently has. It's a promise of a lifetime after all."

The perplexed frown in Kakashi's eyebrows told the other that he didn't quite get the last bit. That was fine. His tutor decided to shift to a more neutral conversational topic instead. "Well, I got lost on my way here when trying to find the PT room…"

Sasuke tuned Kakashi's drabble out with expertise, concentrating on getting his prosthesis to work right. As of now, he was forced to be wheeled about degradingly in a wheelchair, but hell if he would allow himself to be carted about for the rest of his life. He planned to take after his parents' business, and mobility was a big factor he was not willing to compromise.

"…then I met my old university lecturer, Minato-sensei. His son's in this hospital too- condition's quite bad from the way sensei was weeping…" And it seemed as though Kakashi was almost done with his monologue.

"…quite the shame too. Kid had inherited his father's good looks, blonde hair, blue eyes-"

Sasuke swirled on Kakashi, eyes widened in disbelief. "What's his name?"

"Hm?" Kakashi regarded his student lazily. "I didn't know you swing that way, Sasuke."

If looks could kill, Kakashi would have been rolled over and dead in one second flat. As it was, Sasuke settled for piling himself up on his wheelchair and giving Kakashi an impatient glare. "Well, what are you doing? Hurry up and get me to him now!"

Kakashi sighed. Which floor did he meet Minato-sensei again? Was it third level, east wing? Or eighth level south wing? Either way, he made a mental note to never mention little boys in front of Sasuke anymore…

* * *

They got it right on their fifth try, after much seething on Sasuke's part and a lot of flirting on pretty nurses on Kakashi's side. Sasuke felt his stomach drop as his tutor wheeled him into the hospital's ICU, the ones he was in a few weeks back.

The sun was dropping steadily into the horizon, and the corridor was bare of any presence with the exception of a single lone figure, hunched down on one of the chairs outside the foreboding set of double doors.

"Yo, Minato-sensei." Kakashi greeted as they drew close. "How's the kid doing?"

The man, Minato, looked up and offered them a wane smile. He had obviously been crying- his eyes were baggy and bloodshot, and his hair mused up untidily.

"You must be Kakashi's charge, Sasuke." The older man nodded. "I've heard about your… situation from Kakashi. I hope you're coping well."

Sasuke was never one to believe in coincidences, and he sincerely hoped that this might not be the case. But one look at Minato's mop of blond locks and the exact azure blue eyes made Sasuke more than convinced. "Where's Naruto?" he hissed out.

Minato's eyes flickered briefly to meet Kakashi's confused gaze, before he collapsed onto his chair with a sigh. "The doctors are trying the best they can-"

"Namikaze, your son wishes to have his last word with you."

Minato flinched and hesitantly stood up to face the equally haggard doctor in front of him. His eyes were watering up with unshed tears of grief and denial, as though hoping that what he feared will not come to pass. "Tsunade… my son… is he…"

"I'm sorry. We tried our best." Tsunade sighed heavily, wearily peeling off her surgical mask and gloves. She gave a wry smile. "The boy's stubborn enough to hang on until he has his final say though."

Minato didn't need further prompting; he rushed through the double doors, banging into them clumsily, turning a lot of affronted heads with his hurried stumbling and frantic shouts.

"I'm going to miss the kid once he's gone…" Tsunade said mournfully, voice breaking towards the end as she tried to choke back tears. "E-Even though we all knew that this day was bound to come sooner or later…"

"You know what Naruto will say to that sentence." Kakashi said warningly, though his eyes were downcast. Though he had only seen his sensei's child on a few occasions, it was hard to not dislike nor forget someone with such an optimistic and cheerful personality.

"He'll probably say something like how people were born to die, and how there's nothing to feel sad about." Tsunade scoffed, wiping tears away. It was a futile effort- more streamed down afterwards. "How can I not cry when something so precious has been taken away from me? Stupid brat."

Sasuke felt something uncoil within him at Tsunade's words. Stupid. He was so _stupid_. How could he even think for a single moment that Naruto was something his mind had made up to console himself? "I want to see him." Sasuke found himself saying.

"_You… You'll be my friend right?" It was hesitant, awkward. But painfully honest and extremely lonely._

"What are you talking about?" Tsunade said harshly. "Right now, Naruto's-" Tsunade stop short at the sight of Sasuke's face.

"_Hey hey, have you seen the ocean before?" Curiosity and longing for something he knew he could never achieve._

Sasuke tried to mask the tears that dripped down his cheeks in a never-ending stream with his forearms. "Please, let me see him."

"_I'll be watching you even until then, Sasuke." Was this what he meant then?_

It was just at that moment, Minato's head reappeared from behind the closed set of doors. His eyes were- if possible- even more puffier than before. "Sasuke, Naruto's calling for you." Minato whispered brokenly.

Sasuke wheeled himself into the large, sterilized room without a second thought.

"You know, I've never seen Sasuke shed a single tear before." Kakashi spoke up slowly, deep in thought. "Not even after he heard news of his parents' passing. Not even after he found that he'd lost a limb."

"I- I didn't know they were so close." Minato looked confused.

"They aren't." Kakashi replied. "But maybe they're just too painfully alike."

* * *

"Hey… you're looking better… than when I last saw you."

"Dobe." Sasuke wheeled himself closer to the blond boy's bedside, where his frail, wasted body was strung up to a multitude of noisily beeping machines. His mind was brimming with unasked questions waiting to be answered. But eventually, Sasuke settled for one. "Why?"

"Because… you…have the same eyes as me." Naruto smiled through his ventilator mask. "You looked… lonely, and I thought… maybe- maybe you'd want someone to talk to."

"And now you're going to leave me?" Sasuke demanded harshly. "You said you'll always be there for me." He was being childish, selfish, and he didn't care a single bit.

"Sasuke, people die… but they aren't …gone… forever." Naruto gave a small grin down at the small, shaking form beside him. "I'll… always be watching out for you… that's a promise… of a lifetime."

"Don't leave me." Sasuke chocked out through his tears. "I won't allow you to. Naruto, please, I need you by my side-"

"Sasuke!" Sasuke paused in his growingly hysterical rant as Naruto's bony hands gripped both his own. "Trust me… everything will be alright. This isn't goodbye…" The smile was just too blinding for Sasuke; he flinched and closed his eyes.

"What makes you say that?" Sasuke sobbed sullenly. "If you go now, I- I'll-"

"Thirteen's… definitely my lucky number." Naruto interrupted suddenly. "I just know it. And… it's gonna be yours as well. Cuz' I'm… turning thirteen today… and I get to… meet you myself so…"

Sasuke just couldn't bear to see the bright, energetic youth gasping out his last breath on his deathbed. His heart ached, but he couldn't get his mouth working to tell the blond to stop talking.

"We'll… meet again." Naruto's voice was determined, confident. "I promise."

Sasuke lifted his head abruptly up at those words, to confirm what Naruto said was true- only to face a set of unfocused, slowly closing azure blue eyes. "-ruto. Naruto! Don't sleep yet; wake up! Naruto! NARUTO!"

Sasuke was yelling, shouting, screaming and shaking for the blond to respond, but the other hardly moved a single eyelid. Distantly he felt strong set of hands pulling his shaking frame away from the blond and out of the ward… and he was struggling, gripping at air to return to the rapidly disappearing bedside…

There was a brief spark of pain. And black enveloped him a moment after.

* * *

"Uchiha-sama, the guests are expecting you at the lobby in five."

"Don't fuss, I'll be there." Sasuke waved a hand carelessly in dismissal of his secretary as he readjusted his neatly pressed suit and bowtie.

"One of the top five leading corporation in Japan, with bases in over fifty different countries. You've accomplished a lot over the past years, Sasuke."

"And you're persistently still alive and kicking, Kakashi." Sasuke scoffed at the antics of his old tutor. A smile twitched on his lips as he felt his teacher's frown at those words.

"Maa, that's mean Sasuke. I might be hitting my forties soon, but I wouldn't exactly call that _old_…"

"You're right. My bad, you're not old, you're ancient." Sasuke snorted. "Instead of pestering me, why don't you get downstairs and entertain the guests for me; I still have a few documents to finish up before tonight."

"I know when I'm not appreciated." Kakashi sniffed disdainfully and turned to exit. He paused on his way out to throw his long time charge a calculated, searching glance. "Sasuke, you should settle yourself down soon. "

Sasuke shot him a disbelieving look from across his office desk. "Kakashi," he spoke slowly. "I know how to manage my private life by myself."

"That is, if you even have one in the first place." The silver-haired man countered. He paused, carefully scrutinizing the young man before him. "Are you… still waiting for him?"

"Everyday." Sasuke replied without missing a beat.

"Even if you're hanging by a thread?"

Sasuke gave the other a lopsided smirk. "Even if I have the hangman's noose around my neck." His gaze narrowed. "Why did you bring this up all of a sudden?"

Kakashi sighed. "Then I can only wish you good luck."

"Wha-" Sasuke swirled around only to glare waspishly at an ajar oak wood door. "Meddling old man." He muttered, briskly walking over to snap the door shut, impatient to get back to preparing all his documents.

Just as he was closing the door however, it slammed straight back into his face as someone slammed it open from the other side. Cursing his dismal luck and rotten reflexes, Sasuke picked himself off the floor, gingerly rubbing his rapidly reddening nose. He turned to glare at the offender.

"Sorry, sorry, I forgot to knock before entering and I'm in quite the hurry to get in…"

Sun kissed skin. Bright yellow hair. And azure eyes a shade of blue richer than any ocean Sasuke had ever seen.

A messily wrapped bouquet of wild flowers was thrust right under his nose. "Omedetou, Sasuke."

The large grin he was presented with made every single sweat, blood and tear he'd shed during the past thirteen years So. Damn. Worth it.

Uchiha Sasuke was never one to believe in coincidences.

But one particular coincidence always managed to find his way towards him.

In the form of one Uzumaki Naruto.

-FIN-

* * *

Author's Notes:

Thank you for reading this short and simple story of mine!

It was a weird story born out of random plotbunnies mashed together which I simply had to get rid off. Definitely not one of my best pieces; it didn't make much sense, and it isn't that well put together, but I'm quite happy with the overall feel of it nonetheless, and I hope that you've found this an enjoyable read youself! ^^

Reviews and constructive criticisms are highly appreciated!


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